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The Southeast Asian Studies Summer SchoolProgram Dates: June/July 2011The ProgramSpend a summer in Chiang Mai, the cultural heart of Thailand famous for its temples, enduring traditions, jungle-covered mountains complete with hill-tribe villages and elephants. Chiang Mai combines the best of Thailand as a modern city with great shopping and nightlife but also a place that has kept alive the traditions and customs of this diverse and fascinating culture. This intensive multi-disciplinary summer program will not only be of interest to students in Asian studies but also those interested in globalization, democratization, gender and sexual identity, fine arts, human rights, migration and economic development. It will allow students to gain a deeper understanding of Thai and Southeast Asian culture and how their own academic interests play out in the region. Students will have the unique opportunity to “tailor” their summer experience in the region by selecting an elective in their academic discipline or personal area of interest. This program can be taken as a three week (3 credits) or six week (6 credits) experience. While we strongly encourage all students to undertake the full program of 6 weeks, we also understand that due to individual situations some students may not be able to participate in the longer program. As a result the program has been designed as two ‘stand-alone’ independent 3-week modules. The first 3-week module offers a course that focuses on Thailand. This course “Cultural Foundations of Thai Society,” while offering a fascinating insight into Thailand, also serves to provide the background or context for the courses offered in Module 2. While not a compulsory pre-requisite for courses in Module 2, students will find the subject helpful for a deeper appreciation of the material covered in the second course. The second 3-week module allows students to choose from a list of 7 different programs across many academic disciplines. Each course involves a number of off campus excursions or experiences. Students live on-campus at Payap University and take classes on the campus. All instruction is provided by Payap professors and grades appear on a Payap University official transcript. These courses are open to university students from the US, Australia and local Thai students. All instruction is in English. Students taking both Module 1 and 2 will receive a discount on the total cost of the program. "As for my time in Thailand, it was definitely one of the best experiences I have ever had! I loved that the course I took was not just inside a classroom, but that we learned through interaction with the Thai people in their ethnic villages. The program directors planned for us to experience the main attractions of Chiang Mai, Thailand, such as the night markets, teaching English to novice monks, visiting temples, and the amazing Thai food everywhere. Right now, I am even in contact with one of the Thai students I met at Payap University, who is studying abroad in Southern California!" K. Thai, UC Berkeley, Summer 2009 Program LocationsThe program is based at Payap University in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai is a 700-year-old city caught between two worlds. Thai tradition and customs are still very much alive in this city and they happily co-exist with modern Thailand. The city is most famous for having more than 300 Buddhist temples, and one of the most holy, Wat Doi Suthep, sits atop the mountain that overlooks the city. Chiang Mai is rife with festivals and is definitely the handicraft capital of Thailand with beautiful woodwork, jewelry and ceramics. The city also has a vibrant nightlife with many excellent restaurants and a lively music scene. Students will attend lectures on campus most mornings and participate in field excursions and cultural activities most afternoons. Module One, which examines Thai culture and society, will also incorporate an overnight home-stay in a traditional hill-tribe village. Module Two courses all follow their own programs and incorporate different field locations based on the academic content of the course. AccommodationsAll students will live on campus at Payap University in a new student dormitory in a twin-share room. The air-conditioned rooms are large and contain two king single beds, two desks, two wardrobes and a private western-style bathroom. The dorm has wireless internet and contains many nice indoor/outdoor areas built in modern Thai style. Small comfortable hotels or village-style accommodations will be used throughout the remainder of the program dependent on program locations. All accommodations are in located in areas that allow students to safely enjoy the program destinations. Program Dates: Dates for the 2011 program will be announced shortly. In the meantime, please use the 2010 dates as a guideline.Students taking the 6-week program: Students taking the 3-week program chose either: Module 2 - Select 1 out of 7 different courses on offer (see below) Module One - Sunday 13th June – Friday 2nd July 2010Course Title: Cultural Foundations of Thai Society (3 credits) This course introduces students to Thailand through a general survey of topics on Thai culture and society. The course combines classroom lecture and discussion with a variety of field experiences in Chiang Mai and Northern Thailand. It will focus on the changes and continuity of cultural practices and the major institutions of the country. Themes to be analyzed include history, religion, gender, customs, and identity. The course explores both explore empirical and normative questions about Thailand and emphasizes issues of cultural relativism and cross-cultural evaluation. Students should be prepared for challenging individual and group activities outside the classroom. The course includes field trips and a short-term village homestay which provides an enriching insight into many different walks of life in Thailand. The program schedules some weekend activities but provides plenty of free time to meet Thai students at Payap and make new friends in Chiang Mai. Module 2 - Sunday 4th July – Friday 23rd July 2010The following 7 courses are all run during the July module. Chose one of these courses as your program for Module 2. Each course has its own field excursions and inclusions exclusive to that program. Students from all courses will still participate in a variety of cultural additions as a larger group. Course 1: Women and Buddhism in Thailand - unavailable for Summer 2010 This course will explore the religious lives of lay women and female renouncers in various Buddhist societies, particularly Thailand. We will begin by examining stories by and about women in early Indian Buddhism. This will entail an analysis of early Buddhist views on sexuality and spirituality and an analysis of the sacred biographies of early Buddhist nuns. We will then turn our attention to stories about women’s religious lives in the various schools of Buddhism. We will explore stories about female bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism, yoginis and tantric adepts in Vajrayana Buddhism, and powerful goddesses and laywomen in the Theravada tradition. Lastly, we will examine some of the contemporary issues concerning women and Buddhism, including the relatively low status of contemporary Buddhist nuns, the call to restore the bhikkhuni (fully ordained nun) order in Thailand, and the role of women in new Buddhist movements. Click here for more information. Course 2: Queer Thailand: Culture, Society & Sexual Identity Gays, Girls, Gender Bending, Ganja, and Gambling. Thailand is a country of many paradoxes. As a Buddhist Kingdom with the world's longest reigning monarch, Thailand somehow harmoniously balances contemporary sexual freedoms with traditional values. Known around the world as a "Gay Paradise," Thailand provides an excellent location to study and explore variant gender identities and expressions -- a kind of "Asian Mystique"-- which challenges many from the West. Click here for more information. Course 3: Dictatorship and Democratization in Southeast Asia (Political Science) - unavailable for Summer 2010 Dictatorship has long been prevalent in the countries of Southeast Asia. Some countries in the region are in the process of democratization. This course looks at why some countries in Southeast Asia are moving toward pluralism while others seem at a standstill. To what extent does democracy contend with autocracy? To what extent do countries in Southeast Asia even possess a democracy relative to other countries in the world? Exactly how consolidated is pluralism today and how imbedded are civil liberties in the region? What accounts for insurgencies in Southeast Asia? What is the situation of Southeast Asian ethnic minorities? What is the role of the military in Southeast Asia? How developed are electoral systems and political parties in the region? How protected are human rights? This course will study these questions. Click here for more information. Course 4: Globalization and Social Change in Southeast Asia (Sociology) - unavailable for Summer 2010 This course explores the dynamism of Southeast Asia with special attention to the interplay between social change, culture, and development. Our focus on Southeast Asia emphasizes cultural globalization and its social, political, economic implications. Questions about the conceptualization of globalization begin the course followed by examination of theories of culture clash, so-called McDonaldization, and hybridization. Because Thailand and Chiang Mai are excellent locations for field observations of globalization, this course includes multiple off-campus activities designed for purposeful exploration of course concepts and themes. Although greater emphasis is placed on Thailand due to our location, the scope of the course is regional. We also cover these same topics thorough readings on social change in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, and other Southeast Asian countries. Course 5: Sustainable Development in Southeast Asia (ecology/environmental focus) Sustainable Development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs within the confines of Southeast Asia and specific to the Greater Mekong Sub-region. This multi-disciplinary program integrates the social science disciplines of geography, sociology, political science, economics and law with natural science. Students will be introduced to the complexities of development processes and problems in the Mekong Sub-region, which result from the impact in changes in cultural and political movements, government legislation, economic and trade relations, resource use and health issues. A highlight of this program will be a 7-day field excursion to Yunnan Province in southern China. Yunnan and Guangxi provinces are now considered to be part of the Greater Mekong Sub-Region and this will allow students to compare southern China and Northern Thailand. Click here for more information. Course 6: Living Arts: Thai Dance and Music - unavailable for Summer 2010 This course is a study of the musical traditions of Thailand that involve dance, drama, religion and social structure as well as some comparative perspectives of cultures in Asia that are related to music. This is achieved through an exploration of the origins and traditions of Thai drama and dance. Students will learn a variety of traditional Thai dances, and will perform in full costume. The course also explores the ancient art of playing traditional Thai musical instruments. This involves instruction on playing positions, the fundamentals of Thai music and Thai notation, tuning, and scales. Discussion on comparative perspectives of the various traditional musical instruments, songs, ritual practices, and the development of music of Thai ethnic groups will round out this very interactive study experience. Click here for more information. Course 7: Globalization and Economic Development in Southeast Asia - unavailable for Summer 2010 Southeast Asia has emerged, during the last decades of the 20th century, and continues in the early part of the 21st century, as an important player in the global arena. The nations in the region encompass the whole spectrum of economic development and political ideologies, ranging from the wealthier to the poorest country, from the most populous Muslim state to the small landlocked, from established market system to ones undergoing transformation from central planning to private market, from democracies to one-party states. This course is designed to provide the students with a survey of the countries in this strategically important region. It begins with a basic overview of the political and economic history of the area. The course then proceeds to examine the underlying causes of this economic emergence. It will also investigate some issues that are relevant to the whole region, including the reliance on tourism as a development strategy, the role of the state sector, and the cause and consequence of the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990’s. While the focus of the course is on economics, other aspects of the process known as globalization will also be examined. Program FeesThe program fee includes all accommodation, airport transfers, arrival orientation, all program required ground transportation, academic credit, various excursions and tours, entrance fees to National Parks, cultural centers, etc. and some meals (breakfast and dinners, Monday - Friday) in the on-campus dorm. Students will incur additional costs for personal spending, additional meals and extra travel. A full itinerary is provided upon acceptance to the program. Students should also budget for an estimated $1,500 to $1,800 for international and domestic airfare. PROGRAM BONUS: Students receive a $300 discount from the total program fee if they take both the Module 1 course and a course from Module 2. Module 1 Module 2 Course 1: Women and Buddhism in Thailand Course 2: Queer Thailand: Culture, Society & Sexual Identity Course 3: Dictatorship and Democratization in Southeast Asia Course 4: Globalization and Social Change in Southeast Asia (sociology focus) Course 6: Living Arts: Thai Dance and Music Course 7: Globalization and Economic Development in Southeast Asia TravelThe Education Abroad Network will offer suggested flights from the United States to/from Southeast Asia. We will also arrange all internal flights/transfers within the region. Upon acceptance into the program, participants will be provided complete airfare details. CreditParticipants in the program are able to obtain credits through universities and colleges in the United States. Grades will be posted on a Payap University transcript. Credit transfer (generally 3 - 4 U.S. credits per course/module, 6 – 8 credits total) is subject to home institution regulations so please consult your academic advisor for guidance. EligibilityIn order to participate on the program students must be currently enrolled in a degree-granting institution, have completed one year of coursework on a college or university campus by the program start date, and achieved a minimum GPA of 2.75/4.0. However applications will be reviewed by examining the student’s overall application materials including: Course of Study, Letters of Recommendation, and Personal Statement. If you fall below the GPA requirement, please contact The Education Abroad Network to discuss your eligibility to participate in the program. There are no pre-requisites required. Optional 5-day ExcursionStudents interested in lengthening their stay in Thailand are invited to participate on an Optional 5-Day excursion upon conclusion of the second module. This optional trip will include travel to the beautiful southern islands and beach area of Krabi. Students interested in this excursion will be given further details upon acceptance into the program. Submitting an ApplicationInterested students can apply on-line or download the Education Abroad Network application. There is a $30 application fee. In addition, after acceptance there is a $500 deposit. The deposit is fully refundable, less a $75 administrative fee, should students withdraw by March 15, 2011. After March 15, 2011, the deposit is not refundable. Module 2 courses are limited in class size. Numbers are restricted to provide a better learning environment. Apply early to avoid disappointment. Application Deadline: Applications are assessed on a rolling basis. We suggest interested students apply by May 1, 2011, to avoid disappointment. A pre-departure package for the program will be sent to the applicant once accepted into the program.
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